Reliability of your Garmin Edge
Poll: Reliability of your Garmin Edge
Total Members Polled: 82
Discussion
upsidedownmark said:
Unfortunately if you actually use a smartphone with the screen on and navigating with said app, you'll be lucky to get past about 2hrs before it shuts down through lack of battery. Not to mention lack of weather proofing etc.
I agree. Most people go down this route but anyone wanting a decent bike GPS will end up buying a Garmin.My 1000 has been faultless in all respects and lasts for approx 14 hours between charges.
It even ran Livetrack perfectly each day for 3 long days, on a charity Paris jaunt this summer.
upsidedownmark said:
Unfortunately if you actually use a smartphone with the screen on and navigating with said app, you'll be lucky to get past about 2hrs before it shuts down through lack of battery. Not to mention lack of weather proofing etc.
WRT garmin support, seems to be variable. My vectors are out of warranty, and yet they just sent me new pods gratis. They swapped my 910xt when it did the 'auto off' - some of the early units had problems. Guess maybe I've been lucky.. I shall hope to remain so
Yeah but no but... I use my iphone for long distances without any issues, battery life is much better than 2 hours before I need to charge also there are plenty of waterproof cases available.WRT garmin support, seems to be variable. My vectors are out of warranty, and yet they just sent me new pods gratis. They swapped my 910xt when it did the 'auto off' - some of the early units had problems. Guess maybe I've been lucky.. I shall hope to remain so
Raven Flyer said:
upsidedownmark said:
Unfortunately if you actually use a smartphone with the screen on and navigating with said app, you'll be lucky to get past about 2hrs before it shuts down through lack of battery. Not to mention lack of weather proofing etc.
I agree. Most people go down this route but anyone wanting a decent bike GPS will end up buying a Garmin.Whilst I've not used my phone as a bike computer today, after about 3 hours of conference calls and various bits of email and browsing, it's still on 63% battery life, having come off charge at 07:15 this morning. When I use it to record Strava on the way in to work, I'll have been off charge for around 2 hours when I arrive, with around 75 minutes of that with Strava running, and I'll typically be down to around 91% battery life. It's also waterproof.
The GPS tracking also seems to be very accurate. I've certainly never had any problems with segments being picked up or anything, and it also works perfectly with my ANT+ heart and cadence sensors, although slightly annoyingly I have to record rides in another app first and then upload the result to Strava, as Strava doesn't support ANT+ directly on Android.
The phone in question is a Sony Xperia Z2. If there have been improvements between that and the Z5, then I'd suggest it's a very, very, very good phone for use on a bike!
The only downside is that I'm not comfortable with sticking an expensive phone on the bars when I'm mountain biking, and the remote head units for Android so far are rubbish. I've been trying to find a combination of a properly rugged case and handlebar mount, which would then completely 100% negate the need for a Garmin even when I want turn by turn navigation, but this seems to be really hard to find.
ETA - I don't really help myself by having a 30mm stem on my full susser though!
A waterproof Sony is the only one I would consider using but even then, you either get good GPS data logging or good battery.
The early GPS apps were dire for battery life. The 'improvements' they all made were to poll the GPS chip less frequently as it is very battery hungry. The result is greatly reduced accuracy.
One guy on BR was comparing his Garmin's data to his phone running the Garmin app. On each segment, he could have times up to 3 seconds longer using the Garmin app as that was the frequency of polling.
If you are just using an app to record how far you have ridden, or what your average speed was then a phone will do the job. If you want to use live map displays, or play with segments, then a phone is a pretty poor alternative.
The early GPS apps were dire for battery life. The 'improvements' they all made were to poll the GPS chip less frequently as it is very battery hungry. The result is greatly reduced accuracy.
One guy on BR was comparing his Garmin's data to his phone running the Garmin app. On each segment, he could have times up to 3 seconds longer using the Garmin app as that was the frequency of polling.
If you are just using an app to record how far you have ridden, or what your average speed was then a phone will do the job. If you want to use live map displays, or play with segments, then a phone is a pretty poor alternative.
Battery life depends on a lot of factors and you can extend it whatever device you use by changing a few settings. But regardless battery back up has come on leaps and bounds in the last few years. Garmin devices are designed to be small and light therefore battery, GPS reception and display is compromised. For long distance cycling (over 300 KM) small and light is lower on your criteria and even battery life as you will have to recharge in any case you are more interested in reliability and ability to charge on the move. Garmins are generally ok for shorter distances.
Kermit power said:
I don't.
Whilst I've not used my phone as a bike computer today, after about 3 hours of conference calls and various bits of email and browsing, it's still on 63% battery life, having come off charge at 07:15 this morning. When I use it to record Strava on the way in to work, I'll have been off charge for around 2 hours when I arrive, with around 75 minutes of that with Strava running, and I'll typically be down to around 91% battery life. It's also waterproof.
The GPS tracking also seems to be very accurate. I've certainly never had any problems with segments being picked up or anything, and it also works perfectly with my ANT+ heart and cadence sensors, although slightly annoyingly I have to record rides in another app first and then upload the result to Strava, as Strava doesn't support ANT+ directly on Android.
The phone in question is a Sony Xperia Z2. If there have been improvements between that and the Z5, then I'd suggest it's a very, very, very good phone for use on a bike!
The only downside is that I'm not comfortable with sticking an expensive phone on the bars when I'm mountain biking, and the remote head units for Android so far are rubbish. I've been trying to find a combination of a properly rugged case and handlebar mount, which would then completely 100% negate the need for a Garmin even when I want turn by turn navigation, but this seems to be really hard to find.
ETA - I don't really help myself by having a 30mm stem on my full susser though!
Please note I said "with the screen on and navigating". Agreed that recording strava etc is not terribly demanding. If all you want to do is use it as a logger, a phone is fine. If you're using it as a live display, very different case - having that big colourful display lit up is what chews battery. Stripy has commented wrt the GPS accuracy/update rate.Whilst I've not used my phone as a bike computer today, after about 3 hours of conference calls and various bits of email and browsing, it's still on 63% battery life, having come off charge at 07:15 this morning. When I use it to record Strava on the way in to work, I'll have been off charge for around 2 hours when I arrive, with around 75 minutes of that with Strava running, and I'll typically be down to around 91% battery life. It's also waterproof.
The GPS tracking also seems to be very accurate. I've certainly never had any problems with segments being picked up or anything, and it also works perfectly with my ANT+ heart and cadence sensors, although slightly annoyingly I have to record rides in another app first and then upload the result to Strava, as Strava doesn't support ANT+ directly on Android.
The phone in question is a Sony Xperia Z2. If there have been improvements between that and the Z5, then I'd suggest it's a very, very, very good phone for use on a bike!
The only downside is that I'm not comfortable with sticking an expensive phone on the bars when I'm mountain biking, and the remote head units for Android so far are rubbish. I've been trying to find a combination of a properly rugged case and handlebar mount, which would then completely 100% negate the need for a Garmin even when I want turn by turn navigation, but this seems to be really hard to find.
ETA - I don't really help myself by having a 30mm stem on my full susser though!
It also rather depends on what you consider to be 'long'. For me, normal rides are 2-6hrs.
upsidedownmark said:
Please note I said "with the screen on and navigating". Agreed that recording strava etc is not terribly demanding. If all you want to do is use it as a logger, a phone is fine. If you're using it as a live display, very different case - having that big colourful display lit up is what chews battery. Stripy has commented wrt the GPS accuracy/update rate.
It also rather depends on what you consider to be 'long'. For me, normal rides are 2-6hrs.
Not much of my riding involves navigation, as 95% of it is my commute, which I know rather well after 4 years, and the rest is mountain biking on a mixture of trails I know well and following mates down deer runs which aren't on anyone's maps in the first place! It also rather depends on what you consider to be 'long'. For me, normal rides are 2-6hrs.
I have, however, ordered a rugged case and handlebar mount, so once that arrives, I'll try using it on navigation for my next commute to see how much battery it burns and report back.
The flipside of this, of course, is that whilst the size of the screen means more battery burn, it also means more screen!
I've had a few occasions when I have been navigating with the 800 where I've ended up following the wrong bridleway because the screen was too small and too low a resolution to see which one of two or three to choose at a junction. With the Sony having a screen about three times the size, that should be less of a problem.I've also got a little lightweight charger pack which I can strap under the phone if I need a couple of hours of extra juice, but nothing I can do will make the Edge 800 screen any larger.
Kermit power said:
I've also got a little lightweight charger pack which I can strap under the phone if I need a couple of hours of extra juice, but nothing I can do will make the Edge 800 screen any larger.
That's what I was thinking about, I've a dozen small battery packs which can get a phone back to full charge from empty, so in theory they should double the time the battery lasts if hooked up, ugly as that might be. That would give something like 4-6 hours which would do any ride I'm likely to attempt.Anyways, all this isn't very relevant to Gruffy and his TCR needs. Sorry for the OT derail
upsidedownmark said:
Please note I said "with the screen on and navigating". Agreed that recording strava etc is not terribly demanding. If all you want to do is use it as a logger, a phone is fine. If you're using it as a live display, very different case - having that big colourful display lit up is what chews battery. Stripy has commented wrt the GPS accuracy/update rate.
It also rather depends on what you consider to be 'long'. For me, normal rides are 2-6hrs.
My new case and bar mount arrived yesterday. It also rather depends on what you consider to be 'long'. For me, normal rides are 2-6hrs.
On my ride in this morning, I used up 21% of battery life in 66 minutes. If my maths are accurate, that would give me a total range of 5 hours 15 minutes.
That, however, is the time deliberately keeping Google Maps on the whole time without allowing the screen to dim between turns as a power saving option, and also without disabling wifi, Bluetooth or anything else I don't need whilst riding which consumes battery power.
Once you make a few tweaks, I reckon the phone would easily cope with your longest ride, and that's before even thinking about slinging my little charger pack under the bar, which would double the time I could be out, and for the weight weenies still weighs less than the Garmin.
I don't know what voodoo Sony performed to get the sort of battery life they do, but it really is stunningly good, and I can't imagine it will take the other manufacturers long to catch up. I'd reckon that within 12-24 months, battery life will cease to be an issue on any new smart phone.
Kermit power said:
My new case and bar mount arrived yesterday.
On my ride in this morning, I used up 21% of battery life in 66 minutes. If my maths are accurate, that would give me a total range of 5 hours 15 minutes.
That's a short to middling Sunday ride though. My 510 with constant BT communication with phone etc will have used only around 30% of its battery in that time. Ensuring I never need to worry about a battery even on a full day out. Even the wife's 810 with maps permanently on will get at least 10 hours out of a battery. She's had to take and use a spare battery pack 3-4 times in the last year. It's not just the weight, it's the cables and hassle of it allOn my ride in this morning, I used up 21% of battery life in 66 minutes. If my maths are accurate, that would give me a total range of 5 hours 15 minutes.
I can see advantages to using a phone - screen size and cost but battery life is not one of them.
Gren said:
Kermit power said:
My new case and bar mount arrived yesterday.
On my ride in this morning, I used up 21% of battery life in 66 minutes. If my maths are accurate, that would give me a total range of 5 hours 15 minutes.
That's a short to middling Sunday ride though. My 510 with constant BT communication with phone etc will have used only around 30% of its battery in that time. Ensuring I never need to worry about a battery even on a full day out. Even the wife's 810 with maps permanently on will get at least 10 hours out of a battery. She's had to take and use a spare battery pack 3-4 times in the last year. It's not just the weight, it's the cables and hassle of it allOn my ride in this morning, I used up 21% of battery life in 66 minutes. If my maths are accurate, that would give me a total range of 5 hours 15 minutes.
I can see advantages to using a phone - screen size and cost but battery life is not one of them.
I reckon with a bit of tweaking, I'd get probably seven hours out of it if I wanted to. Go back a couple of years, and I doubt I would've got three hours. Who knows what we'll get in s couple of years from now.
Garmin have sent me a replacement 810. Pretty quick about it too. Sadly that's where the good news ends.
First ride with it today on a 70km ride on familiar roads. It crashed after 34km and lost that data. Then it crashed four more times before I could carry on. Turn-by-turn navigation wasn't working. It'd tell me when I was off course but wouldn't tell me what the course actually was. Crashed twice at the end of the ride but, thankfully, hadn't lost the last half of the ride.
This is supposed to be a reconditioned unit that's gone through all the necessary tests and been approved as in 'as new' condition. I'll give it a couple more rides but with the number of flaws this one is already showing I can't see that lasting long.
First ride with it today on a 70km ride on familiar roads. It crashed after 34km and lost that data. Then it crashed four more times before I could carry on. Turn-by-turn navigation wasn't working. It'd tell me when I was off course but wouldn't tell me what the course actually was. Crashed twice at the end of the ride but, thankfully, hadn't lost the last half of the ride.
This is supposed to be a reconditioned unit that's gone through all the necessary tests and been approved as in 'as new' condition. I'll give it a couple more rides but with the number of flaws this one is already showing I can't see that lasting long.
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